Foreign defence delegation meets Army Chief

AN 18-member team of senior military officers, belonging to tri-services and the Police in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Israel, during a part of their study course tour at the Indian National Defence College (NDC), arrived in Sri Lanka and called on Army Commander Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka at his office yesterday morning.

Twelve Indian Army, Navy, Air Force and Police officers, one senior Navy officer from Bangladesh, two Army officers from Myanmar and Nepal, one senior officer from Israel Army, one officer attached to the Indian Foreign Service were among the delegates, headed by Senior Director Staff, Indian Foreign Service Yogendra Kumar.

Those officers, upon completion of their routine tour to Maldives under the annual NDC course on "National Security and Strategic Studies" will spend about five days in Sri Lanka, meeting a selected group of defence officials.

Lt.Gen. Fonseka, extending his warm greetings welcomed them to Sri Lanka and to the Army Headquarters. He gave them an update on the current battles and other security developments in the Wanni.

Lieutenant General Fonseka told the delegates how the weakened terrorist outfit has now resorted to deploying many of their top-rung leaders to resist the Army's advance into terrorist hideouts.

"Even Tiger political leaders have been drawn into confrontations with troops since they are running short of cadres," the Commander said. He also assured them that the Sri Lankan Army working to a strategic plan would do everything possible to wipe out the terrorist menace from the soil as soon as possible.

At the end of the interaction, both Commander and the Head of the Delegation exchanged mementoes.